If you visit my home in small-town-USA I think you’ll be surprised by my art collection.
A local artist, and prolific one at that, seeing my framed prints – mostly European art – told me politely but pointedly that there is so much original local art that framing and hanging a print of anything is unnecessary.
I took that to heart.
Overtime, through the wonders of the Internet, I have purchased several pieces of South African art – and in making the purchase have talked with the artists.
I love our large painting of the Berg’s Amphitheater by Peter VanHeereden which hangs in my counseling study. The living room has several Western Cape scenes and one large up close protea. A conversation starter and much loved piece is a painting of a woman with a sleeping baby tied to her back and a basket of fruit balance on her head. Each of these is by Western Cape artist Willem Onker. There are two breaking wave scenes by Pretoria’s Trevor Beach – who only paints waves!
It is all very beautiful and I love it all but our home screams one thing very loudly and very clearly: I miss living and being in South Africa.
A grateful heart will lift your spirit, shift your lens from what you think you lack or need, to recognition of all you do have and enjoy.
A grateful heart will lighten your load and offer you helpful objectivity.
A grateful heart will sharpen your vision to see the miracles in the immediate – like the shifts in seasons, the births of neighbors’ babies, the happiness you see in a child when she runs to be embraced by her daddy.
A grateful heart will alleviate the necessity for sarcasm and cynicism as you find yourself expressing gratitude.
Gratitude will open your eyes to sunsets and sunrises in new ways, to regard each as an opportunity to be thankful for a good day ending and the arrival of fresh starts and new opportunities.
Gratitude welcomes the noises and interruptions of children, even other people’s children, and the elderly, even other people’s elderly, rather than considers both an irritation or interruption.
A grateful person is lavish with thank you-s and praise and enjoyment (in ways that are contagious) despite trying circumstances and, oddly, the gratitude has a way of rewarding those who spread it and rewards the grateful with even more for which to be grateful.
“Perfect love casts out fear” reads a phrase from sacred writings.
As a close friend pointed out, “fear casts out love.”
Indeed.
But fear is even more pernicious than casting out love (acceptance, inclusion, empathy).
Fear twists.
Distorts.
Fear prevents and perverts.
Fear hi-jacks thinking.
It injects toxins, destructive toxins into what may have been a healthy thinking process. Possessing no limitations or boundaries, fear invades, dominates, floods every nook and cranny of the psyche (in people and groups and sadly, even churches) and leaves no room for reasonableness, compassion, empathy or love.
It ultimately renders the fearful inhumane.
Jesus oft’ repeated “Do not be afraid,”
He said it when His followers were at points of potential high-reactivity and much under stress, duress.
When anxstress.
Anxstress is a term one of my sons coined when he was about 8 years old and we have used it ever since.
I do not believe this repeated Admonition from Jesus was only words of comfort. They were much more. They were words of comfort but also words of correction, encouragement, and protection. They were words of protection from what fear does and does so well.
It destroys.
Fear works from the inside and destroys people and then it destroys friendships and deeper relationships, even long term family relationships, even churches
“Do not be afraid” were much more than words of comfort.
Jesus was doing His best to keep us humane.
One of my very favorite pieces of art. Secured from a street artist in Moscow.
May you meet gentle and warm hearted people and be warm hearted and gentle toward yourself and towards others. There appears to be so much fury and anger and so many people living on edge. May you and I offer a counter experience and offer others a place of welcome and safety. In doing so we may not change the world or make a shift or dent in our immediate environments but we will lift and encourage the hearts of a few.
May you be firm in your decisions and be confident in your dealings with yourself and others. There is a vast difference between confidence and arrogance and, while they are often confused, may you and I have only confidence. Inner-confidence permits others to take a stand, for themselves. Confidence will assist you and me to live deliberately and avoid victim thinking.
May you be generous and kind in a world that seems to promote selfishness, greed, indifference and even promote unkindness. This does not mean we have to give beyond our means or be un-thinking in our giving of time and resources. Wise giving of cash, talent, and time empowers others. Unwise giving of cash, talent and time will exhaust and deplete you and me.
A few minutes later, also from Nate (21) comes, “I’ve let Duke out. I am going to Muncie.”
“Why?” I replied.
“Buy clothes,” he writes.
Seconds later Thulani texts from New York City: “Checking in. Alaina and I are going to dinner. I’ll let you know when I’m home. Talk soon.”
My sons are far from perfect but when it comes to keeping me “in the loop” they both get an A-plus.
I am deeply grateful for this, knowing several parents who seldom (or never) hear from their adult sons and I know a few who seldom hear from their daughters.
I value every text and every call, even the calls that are requests for cash. I try really hard to take every attempted contact as I am steeped in the knowledge of how unusual it is to hear daily from adult sons.
There are times I am traveling and both boys will text me to say he’s home from wherever.
The most “at home” feelings flood me when I know both my sons are safe and home, no matter where in the world I may be.
A public speaker I once heard said there is no action known to humanity or shortcoming of which he himself is incapable.
I mulled this thought.
I resisted his obvious implication.
There are indeed many things, my thinking was, that some humans have done that I will not do.
I believed then, as I do now, in my capacity to draw the line.
But, I am less eager, less assured, some years later, to disagree with the insightful speaker. It has taken time and pain but I have seen myself, and, while there is much to love and enjoy, I don’t always like what I see.
My capacity to draw the line, to maintain good boundaries, the wisdom to place limits on primal urges, has involved a complex multifaceted and multilayered journey of failures and some successes, and everything with all the in-between ambiguities.
I know I am as vulnerable as the speaker suggested. Indeed, there remain things I won’t do that other humans have done, but there are times the line is rather faint and I’m as vulnerable as the next person to taking care of myself at the expense of others.
The freedom to be alone and enjoy time to think and plan and explore an internal world for reflection and growth and appreciation – with the love and support of significant others.
The freedom to share life with a diverse collection of friends and associates with whom values and goals are shared – with the support of significant others.
The freedom to reach out to family and extended family without explanation or apology — with the encouragement of significant others.
The freedom to investigate and discover new interests and passions quite unlike those previously pursued – with the support of significant others.
The freedom to confront situations that are fraught with unease or dissatisfaction with the hope of developing a plan to shift circumstances and move away from untenable conditions – with the support of significant others.
The freedom to change (and sometimes to fail at changing) established unhelpful patterns, habits that have resulted in painful consequences – with support and not cynicism from significant others.
The freedom to rest and recuperate from stressful days, weeks, months, seasons in order to re-enter life and productivity with freshness and zeal – with encouragement and support from immediate family and significant others.
The freedom to seek help from outsiders and for help to be confidential — with support from significant others.
I have had the joy of being with you this past week: several of you shared meals with me and we met in ways I know I will remember. I hope you will, too. Thank you. Given the time I would have enjoyed such an opportunity with each of you. During your first session with me I told you I would give you my notes from each of my talks. If you read this letter today or in ten years it is all ok with me. People do what they are ready to do. Keep them. See how well they age. Remind yourself that I repeatedly said I am addressing the future you.
Day One I tried to tell you how unique and beautiful you are. This is not an older adult attempting to convince you of something adults generally want you to believe. As I said I really have never met – 50 countries and thousands of people later – anyone, anywhere who is not beautiful. Yes, I have met people who have done really ugly things and done a few myself, but, you (we) are beautiful. Get to know any human by listening, really listening, and I believe you will soon agree with me. We talked about leadership: I said Leadership is a Function, a role, not a position. If your motive in becoming a leader is to see your name at the top of a list or to be the boss, your distorted motive will be your constant hurdle. Leadership is about who and what you are and what you do within a community. It is not about status. If it is the status you seek, your drive for recognition will persistently contaminate your leadership. To lead others effectively it is necessary to know what you are good at and what you are not good at. Work at your strengths. Accommodate your weaknesses. Both are yours for the long-haul.
I encouraged you to consistently define yourself. If you don’t, someone will. Resist the natural anxious urge to define others. Become an expert in your own behavior. Resist the natural (anxious) urge to be an expert in the behavior of others, especially those who annoy you. Listen more than you speak. Make sure you are hearing, not waiting to talk. I closed saying Self-Leadership has by far the greatest impact on how effective you are as a leader. If you can’t lead yourself you can effectively lead nothing and no one.
Day Two I emphasized your (and my) uniqueness. I urged you to find within the depths of where your hearts, minds, spirits, souls meet (see it as a kind of Venn diagram) the beautiful “place” generally referred to as the SELF. YourSELF is beautiful, it’s as unique as your fingerprints, your voice, and your personality. It is shaped by your family history, your DNA, by enduring joyful and nurturing experiences. It is shaped also by trauma, by loss, grief and so much else. This SELF is resilient. The Self wants to be well. It self-repairs (given conducive conditions). It is not Selfish to find and love and know yourSelf. I would suggest it is selfish NOT to. People who avoid Self-Awareness because they consider it selfISH are usually people who put stress on leadership teams and on friendships and battle with boundary confusion – “I am I, you are you, we are we, Let’s not confuse the three” – Remember? It’s corny BUT if you live it, it will save you a LOT of pain and therapist bills!
Day Three I emphasized your God-given desire for Autonomy. It’s part of your humanity. To desire self-directedness (AUTONOMY – SPACE, ROOM TO MOVE, freedom to be yourself) comes with your birth package. When it is unfulfilled – or ignored – you will be discontent. You have a similar God-given desire for Intimacy. This is part of your humanity. We all want some closeness, to belong, to be part of. Accepting that these Dueling Desires live within you and recognizing they are present in all the people will make it easier for you to welcome both into their legitimate place within your life. You (and I) really grow up when you (we) meet these needs in yourself AND understand that others are similarly driven. When your best friend chooses to be alone (wants Autonomy) it is not a rejection of you (necessarily) if you, at the same time, want Intimacy. Remember, you cannot LOVE and CONTROL the same person.
This afternoon (Thursday) and Day Four, I left you with eight things I would tell my younger self:
Save, and never touch, one third of all the money you earn. Few people regret having saved from an early age. Few things upset adulthood as well as financial pressures.
Honor your family and extended family relationships above all other relationships. If you are a brother or a son, a niece or an aunt, be the best one you can be.
Learn to live without blaming others. While others are indeed imperfect, blaming others for anything will seldom get you to where you really want to go. There are exceptions which I made clear (I hope).
Forgive, truly forgive, but remember. To forgive and forget is often foolish and even impossible. Remembering is not the same as holding a grudge. There are exceptions which I made clear (I hope).
Find your VOICE and hold onto it. Finding your voice means figuring out what you want your life to say. Only a small portion of finding your voice has to do with actual words.
Every unfortunate or bad thing that happens to you will ultimately offer you a choice. Will it become SEED (for growth) or STONE (resentment or hardness)? Seed will be most helpful to you. The choice will always be yours.
Pursue (chase) education even over romance. Few people regret having a sound education.
Gain understanding about your power, the power that comes with being human. Treasure it; Protect it, Deploy it. Use it for its intended purpose only.
I have loved being with you. Thank you. I especially enjoyed the Talent Show and the party. I loved watching your amazing capacity to have fun and I particularly enjoyed seeing some of you who arrived earlier this week appearing shy and withdrawn having the time of your lives.
Rod
Dad, Uber Driver, International Speaker and Newspaper Columnist
Save, and never touch, one third of all the money you earn. Few people regret having saved from an early age. Few things upset adulthood as powerfully as constant financial pressures.
Honor your family and extended family relationships above all other relationships. If you are a brother or a son, a niece or an aunt, be the best one you can be.
Learn to live without blaming others. While others are indeed imperfect, blaming others for anything you are will seldom get you to where you really want to go.
Forgive, truly forgive, but remember. To forgive and forget is often foolish and often impossible. Remembering is not the same as holding something against another.
Find your voice and don’t let others try to take it from you. Finding your voice means figuring out what you want your life to say. Only a little of finding your voice has to do with actual words.
Every bad or unfortunate thing that happens to you, once you have gotten over the shock, will offer you a choice. Will it become seed (for growth) or stone (resentment or hardness)? Seed will be most helpful to you.
Pursue as much education as possible even over and above romance. Few people regret having a sound education.
Gain understanding about your power, the power that comes with being human. Treasure it; Protect it, Deploy it. Use it for its intended purpose only.
I am sure things stick in your memory as they do in mine.
My parents home on Blackburn Road was the most open home you could imagine.
Strangers were simply people whom you were yet to know.
Week in, week out, on a Sunday our home was open to a flow of family and friends who stayed for lunch and then often stayed for dinner after and afternoon around the pool. All of this occurred while my parents also ran their grocery shop at the front of our property and to which our home was attached.
Often there’d be a dozen or even twenty people for Sunday lunch and my parents were never alarmed when new people showed up, often unannounced.
One couple, apparently our mother’s distant cousins, were regulars. Harold and Muad (of course not their real names) were known for their wealth and their beach-side home in an affluent part of the city.
Harold and Maud were regulars, coming Sunday after Sunday for lunch, often staying for dinner.
After my parents sold the grocery shop and after my mother’s death, dad let me know he’d dropped in to see the cousins while out on a Sunday afternoon drive to ease his loneliness.
“Can you come back later, we are having lunch,” said Harold.
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